Thursday, February 16, 2006

Folks are startin' to talk-- talk about how Dick Cheney is toast. Lefties are salivating at the prospect of hounding 250 pounds of pure evil out of office, and doing what they can to pile on and elevate the shotgun story into the straw that broke the elephant's back. A bunch of conservatives are pulling out their long knives too, though for different reasons.

Cut that shit out right now. Because this is a classic "be careful what you wish for" scenario.

Unless Karl Rove figures out a way to quickly repeal the 22nd Amendment, or to suspend the 2008 election (possibilities I am not dismissing), Dubya's reign of error will end in January of 2009. At this point, it looks like Iraq is not the only place where these assclowns did not have a plan for succession. Who will be King George's anointed successor?

Normally, the VP seat is only seen as valuable for the purpose of serving as the inside track to the Oval. (As wretched a campaigner as Mike Dukakis was, it can be argued that the only reason George the First beat him was that he had Reagan's coattails.) As long as the Dick lives at the Naval Observatory, though, that advantage is essentially wasted. Even before this weekend, Cheney (known in some circles as "Vice Preseident Crashcart") was almost universally seen as unelectable, with serious health concerns, sky-high negatives, legal problems, you name it.

If you want to get the neocons out of power, the best thing for our country is for the official #2 to be unelectable. That is arguably the single biggest political problem for Rove & Co. for 2008.

So let's not solve it for them.

If we help Karl push Cheney out, Dubya's handlers will fill the slot with someone they think can cover their asses by winning in 2008. I'll wager that Bush puts the Condiliar in that seat. And though she will scare off a few Bubba's, my guess is that she will still steamroll anyone the Dems can put up if she is running as a sitting VP. And the Republicans will thereby fracture the traditional black-Dem alliance and tilt electoral politics in a way that will take decades to undo.

If the Condiliar wins in 2008, any hope we have of ever seeing justice done in exposing and prosecuting the crimes committed by and under King George will die. You will be able to kiss those hopes, and our collective asses, a quiet farewell.

So bite your tongues, folks. As awful as he is, Dick Cheney is exactly where he needs to be -- a mistrusted, porcine boat anchor snagging the neocon Man 'O War.